New report reveals benefits of raising Kansas cigarette tax

Smoking cost!

Kansas’ cigarette tax is 79 cents per pack. That’s 35th in the nation. The national average is $1.34 per pack.

A report released today says raising the state’s cigarette tax by $1 per pack WOULD

• Raise $74.7 million a year.

• Prevent 21,600 children under age 18 from becoming smokers.

• Spur 12,000 adult smokers to quit. Most would quit within months.

• Save 10,000 residents from premature, smoking-caused deaths.

• Save $11.6 million in health costs over five years from fewer smoking-affected pregnancies, heart attacks and strokes.

• Save $492 million in health care costs. These savings would accrue over the lifetime of people who stop smoking or never start because of the increase.

Poll finds:

• 67 percent of voters nationally support a $1 tobacco tax increase.

• 70 percent oppose other options to make up budget deficits such as higher state income, gasoline and sales taxes, and cuts to education, health care, transportation and law enforcement programs.

Matthew Myers

“This report shows that raising tobacco taxes is truly a win-win-win for Kansas. It is a budget win that will help protect vital programs like health care and education, a health win that will prevent kids from smoking and save lives, and a political win with the voters.”

— Matthew Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.

Report details:

• “Tobacco Taxes: A Win-Win-Win for Cash-Strapped States” was released by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, American Heart Association, American Lung Association and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

• These organizations commissioned the national survey of 847 registered voters was conducted Jan. 20-24 by International Communications Research and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.4 percentage points.

• More information, including the full report, state-specific information and detailed poll results, can be found at www.tobaccofreekids.org/winwinwin.